Cambodia revisited

Chinese New Year in HK is superficially very pretty.  Last year there were lots of adorable tigers, but this year's bunnies are even sweeter.  The lobby of the Landmark building always has the most tasteful festive displays, but aside from the decorations, CNY is a good time to escape the February cold and damp, especially since we "weathered" the parade and fireworks here last year (blog 18/02/10).  As the saying goes: "been there, done that".

This year we joined the crowds fleeing the city, and headed to the Sokha Beach Resort in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.  (Sihanoukville is named after King Norodom Sihanouk, the Father of Cambodia, who is still alive and not-so-well, living in China or North Korea)  Although this resort has recently been featured in a high-end spa magazine (the one you pick up in airport lounges), it is not as busy or well-known as the resorts in Borneo, Thailand, or the Philippines.
One of the reasons it isn't very popular (yet) is because it is rather difficult to get to.  We flew to Phnom Penh, and were met by our driver who (miraculously?) drove the 200 km to Sihanoukville in three hours!  Local buses take up to six hours to cover the distance.  Cambodia National Highway 4 leads directly to Sihanoukville, but it passes through village after village.  We amused ourselves listing all the different kinds of transport along the way:  motos with whole families, primitive carts pulled by animals, minivans overflowing with people (reminding us of the Volkswagens in the circus), tuk tuks, and lots of random, emaciated cows who always have the right of way (can hardly wait to visit India!).  There's a kind of monotony to the poverty that never changes, never ends.  Most of the houses and shops flanking the road are built on stilts - to offer protection during the rainy season.  There is no running water, and there are open ditches filled with debris.  It's a numbingly sad place.  However, on our return drive to PP early on Monday morning, it was heartening to see all the children heading to school.  Education is still the key to Cambodia moving forward.  Unfortunately for Jeff, I immediately got into my "let's reorganize this country" frame of mind during the drive!  e.g. How about setting aside one mandatory day each month (or even year?) to rake up the mounds of garbage everywhere!  But I digress from the vacation ...

We had a very restful time at the resort - not our usual kind of run-around-see-everything trip.  We ventured off the beautiful grounds only a few times.  The first was to visit the local market - emphasis on "local".  Not for tourists.  The market reminded us why we love Cambodia - smiling people everywhere, willing to have their pictures taken.  Saffron-robed monks walk through the streets, stopping to say a prayer at each shop, and to receive some charity in return.

While we were in the supermarket, we noticed quite a few Europeans and Aussies shopping for groceries.  We realized that Sihanoukville is a very cheap winter destination - there are numerous guest houses near the public beaches that charge very little for long-term stays.  Certainly a more economical alternative to the Cote d'Azur or the Maldives!  Although there are traffic lights at major intersections, young people in uniform stand on the side of the road with flags, making sure that cars actually stop when the light is red.

Thought you all might enjoy these photos of the local gas station.  When we were in Siem Reap last April, the oil was stored in whiskey bottles.  This time, Pepsi bottles were the containers of choice.  Good way to recycle!



One morning, I ended up providing comic relief to a large group of middle-class Cambodians who were relaxing on the beach near the kayak rental hut.  Jeff convinced me that it was safe to take out a two-seater, even though the waves were very high (by my definition, not his, but I'm the one writing this blog!).  As our kayak bobbed around in the waves, I tried to climb in gracefully.  Alas, I ended up tumbling over the edge and flopping unglamorously into my seat!  Lots of laughter on the shore.  It was all worth it - we paddled (Jeff paddled, I relaxed) to a primitive fishing village, where the fishermen asked us if we wanted to buy some cooked fish.  Unfortunately, we hadn't brought any money with us, so we declined.  My disembarkation from the kayak was also clumsy - more laughter from the locals.  Oh well, you can't take my anywhere.

In our last blog about Cambodia, I mentioned how good the food is.  On this trip, we kept up our streak of never having a bad Cambodian meal.  We avoided the buffet restaurants at the resort (I do prefer being served dinner, especially in pricey restaurants), and ate at the tapas bar two of the four nights we were there.

The other two nights, we ate at Chez Claude.  Claude is a French-Vietnamese expat, who moved to Sihanoukville in 1992 to set up a scuba diving school, bed&breakfast, and restaurant.  A crazy tractor-driven cable car takes you up the short, steep hill to the main lodge.  There are fusball machines on the first floor; the restaurant is on the second floor.  What a surprise and delight to eat real French food in the far-off Cambodia!  The lodge reminded me of Rabiner's in Ste. Agathe - rustic and comfortable.

Our meals were delicious (mmm steak-frites, fondue, creme brulee), accompanied by good French wine.  Claude was happy to tell us his story (tout en francais), and he was so pleased that we returned for a second visit, that our pre-dinner drinks were on the house.  We even discovered a Canadian connection - his brother lives in Sept-Iles!





Our quiet vacation in Cambodia was just what we needed!  We came back rested and ready to tackle our next adventure - showing all our visitors around HK.  We are looking forward to hosting Arlene and John, Rhonda, Gerry and Laura, Diane and Shelly, Doug, Bill and Bill, and Bonnie and Stephen in the next few weeks.

January 2011

We stood at our window on New Year's Eve, watching the magnificent fireworks along the harbour, marvelling at the exciting year that had just past, and wondering what new adventures were in store for 2011.
In true Dale and Jeff form, January 1st brought two new experiences (albeit rolled into one) - a trip to Ocean Park and a Chinese wedding.  Ocean Park is a very successful, enormous amusement park/marineland.  It is so big that there's a 20-minute cable car ride from one side to the other.  From the cable car, there's a breathtaking view of Repulse Bay - the gorgeous high rises and the beach.

But the real draw of Ocean Park is the giant panda exhibit.  Years ago, we visited the Washington, D.C. zoo specifically to see the pandas.  Unfortunately, they were all asleep.  This time we lucked out - there was Big Bertha chomping on her bamboo sticks with her back haughtily turned to the crowd.  I am now keen on visiting the giant panda sanctuary in Chengdu, Sichuan, where they let you hold the cubs on your lap (for a donation of $200US!).  After snapping about twenty photos, we moseyed around some of the other sea creature exhibits before making our way to the wedding.

The celebrants were Christy and Rambo.  Christy is one of Jeff's employees, and Rambo also works at Manulife.  After hors d'oeuvres, we all filed down to the dolphin theatre to watch the ceremony.  Jeff and I were rather overdressed!  Because it was a cold evening (10 degrees C), most of the guests were in jeans, boots (fur-lined), and puffy down jackets (a fashion staple in HK).  I wore a turtle-neck dress with a long sweater-coat and boots, and Jeff was in a blazer, shirt and pants.  The ceremony was all in Cantonese - very formal and serious.  I found it interesting that the custom is to have the two fathers witness the marriage certificate.  The mothers were not at all involved in the ceremony, nor were there bridesmaids or groomsmen.  On a lighter side, the Ocean Park mascot appeared and hammed it up with Christy and Rambo.  The three of them walked over to the other side of the pool and fed the leaping dolphins.

Later that week, I joined an AWA outing to Dafen, China.  Dafen is a suburb of Shenzhen, famous for producing replicas of Western paintings.  I was amazed at how extensive this village is!  There are 2,000 artists in hundreds of workshops selling faux Van Gogh, Matisse, Picasso, etc.  The "artists" will copy anything and everything, including calligraphy scrolls and embroidery.  My mission was to order a replica of a Botero painting that my parents love.  I was rather overwhelmed, since I wasn't sure which shop would be reliable.  Luckily, one of the ladies in our group brought me to her favourite place.  The painting was completed a week later and mailed to me in a durable tube.  It turned out great!  On my next visit, I'd like to bring some family photos - the artists are very good at turning them into oil paintings.

There are always surprises in China.  Dafen's surprise was the huge Walmart store around the corner from the artist village.  Yes, it looked like Walmart both inside and out, and there was even a McDonald's on the main floor (we ate at the noodle shop next door).  Unfortunately, the concrete plaza surrounding the store was littered with garbage (littered is too gentle a word!).  My favourite part of the store was the home entertainment department, where all of the t.v.s were showing a Celine Dion video over and over.  My homesick moment!

Suzanne and Robert, friends from Toronto, had made arrangements to stay with us on Saturday, the 8th before leaving on a southeast Asia cruise the next day. Unfortunately, they had "the trip from hell" getting to HK via London.  Their flight arrived four hours late, the cruise ship neglected to send a driver to fetch them, and they had no HK money.  Once they got a grip on the situation ... they hailed a cab, boarded their ship, bought a bottle of wine at a 7-11 near the port, and celebrated making it to HK in one piece!  Jeff and I collected them the next morning and had a wonderful, sunny day showing them around the city.  We also visited their friends, Julian and Laytin, who live on the Peak.  What a spectacular view!  We even managed to get them to their ship at 6 p.m., in time to check in before sailing at 8.  Suzanne and Robert loved their cruise (Azamara) to Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.  They are now in Australia for a few months.  The joys of retirement!

As usual, we had our fill of culture and history in January.  We attended an eclectic "swing" concert, featuring five different orchestras, ranging from a middle school band (worse than the Wagar High band) to an excellent Filipino orchestra.  We are discovering the Filipino love for music, and their talent for both performing and teaching.  One Saturday, we wandered over to a gallery showing Michael Wolf's photos of HK corner houses.  These are some of my favourite buildings in the city - in need of protection since they are aging, and the city will probably tear them down in the next few years.   On a cold weekend, we finally visited the Sun Yat Sen Museum (literally around the corner from our apartment), and the Museum of Medical Sciences down the street.  The SYS museum was not quite as interesting as the one we saw in Canton last spring, but the premises are beautiful - an early 20th century mansion, built by a member of the Ho family (HK's wealthiest Chinese in that era).  The house is on a hill, and it used to have a clear view of the harbour.  It now has a clear view of the ugly apartment high-rises across the street.  (Mr. Ho must be turning over in his grave).

On a cold, grey day, Chloe and I did a walking tour of Sham Shui Po, the poorest neighbourhood in the city.  Although there are some upscale apartment buildings on the fringes of the district, most of the buildings in "the Po" are public housing.  In the early 1950s, hundreds of thousands of immigrants escaped from China, and many squatted in this neighbourhood.  A huge fire in the Po in 1953 left over 50,000 homeless.  This event begat the start of public housing in HK.  Although the "projects" block much of the daylight from the neighbourhood, life goes on in the streets which are filled with cheap electronic stores and accessories such as buttons and bows (the clothing factories used to be located nearby).

Are any of you aware that Prince Charles is a fairly talented artist?  An exhibit of his lithographs, as well as sketches and drawings by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, were on display in one of the office towers a few weeks ago.  Charles loves to paint his little homes - Balmoral, Sandringham, Windsor.  He is also proficient at painting landscapes.  Victoria practised her art during her frequent "lying in" periods after giving birth to her nine children.  Her drawings look like something out of Punch or Dickens.

One of the highlights of the month was the UN Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at the Jewish Community Centre on January 26.  The guest of honour was Father Patrick Desbois, a French priest, whose mission is to uncover the mass graves of the 1.5 million Jews who were shot and buried by the Nazis in the Ukraine, Russia, and Poland.  He has spent years searching for these locales, and is rushing to complete his quest before the surviving witnesses to these tragedies die off.

January was birthday month!  Best wishes to my dad, who celebrated his 88th (a very lucky number in China) on the 13th.  On my birthday (the 17th), we had a wonderful celebration at the Orange Tree restaurant with Donna (the 30th), David (the 21st), Hanora (the 10th), and Ed.  Jeff had ordered a birthday cake - we had a good laugh at the tiny plate that was presented.  It took four of us to blow out the single candle!  Alas, Hanora and Ed have just moved back to Manhattan - "ave atque vale".

Last month was the coldest January since 1977.  The temperature never rose above 20C (no, we don't need sympathy from our Northern friends and family).  Of course it didn't come close to the sub-zero temperatures I experienced in Harbin (previous blog), but it still offered me the chance to wear sweaters, jackets, and leather boots, which normally sit forlorn in the closet.  I will end this blog with a photo of photo of two dogs - a whippet and a greyhound - parked outside the supermarket, looking embarrassed to be dressed in their winter finery.